Atte Mäkelä's page

I'm not really sure what to make of this class anymore. Beseech is nice addition sure, but I didn't feel that it was that remarkable that it would save the class from it's inherent flaws. I'm in similar lines as nighttree in part, I don't really know what the class is supposed to do, since from my limited testing (managed to test it a bit but not enough for it count as serious testing so I won't be posting the notes on that.) and reading up on what other people say, it still doesn't do anything well. You can gear it up to be a melee fighter, but only adequate, and on assumption you really focused your stats on str and the like.

Maybe I lost some luster on the class after reading up on binder and the 3rd party Occultist. I thought the medium was going for similar thing, but the medium spirits feel underwhelming compared to the vestigest/occultist spirits and the mechanic of influence and type matching feels somewhat bothersome compared to the influence/multi spirit of the other camp.

I'll still keep an eye on the class and maybe run another test or two if I can manage time from finishing up on work because I think the theme of having spirits bound to you is really good and I'd love to see it work so that GMs might allow it (3.5/3rd party is pretty much no go).

I still really hope the spirits would be made more potent and more centrepiece, giving more interesting and useful powers, even if it is at cost of spellcasting. It could be great to have Medium become the martial of occult, but I'd be fine with Medium just becoming well, something that has a role.

I'm with Dolarre and Orthos on this, instead of making Medium just another 6/9 caster and have it invariably compared to bard with overly focused set of abilities (I mean, undead empathy isn't really going to be multipurpose thing.) I highly advocate taking page from the binders book.

I'm with the simplification process when it comes to contracting multiple spirits, just have them give their stuff to you without the complicated system of slots they currently have. But I do agree with CHB on the influence thing, cut that thing out, having to lose control of your character sucks for player and is work for DM, and thus has no positive side. So as a whole, I guess I stand in the middle ground.

Got to thinking, and will keep away from the possession issue now, people much more clear and fluent than me have made good arguments against the losing control issue.

I'd prefer if the class didn't turn into a 6 level caster class for several reasons. For one, it doesn't really add to the class flavour, your spirits would turn more into domains that are taken for spells considering your spell list is entirely dependent on them. Secondly, still for flavour, the spells are still the same spells used by every other class, so it doesn't really add anything really different to the table, and would just be contesting bard in the role of jack of all trades, but with more eclectic selection of spells, with less stable theme.

But I'd advice against 6 level casting also for the reason of variety. Currently the psychic book has half of it's classes already be six level casters, with one without casting and one with full casting. I think we have plenty on that front already in terms of psychic casters.

I'd almost go as far as to suggest the opposite direction to upping the spellcasting, namely cutting it out entirely. The theme of medium is spirits, channeling spirits and getting power from them. So perhaps expanding on the spirits, making them little more robust and able to give more options. Dropping the spell list from them could also allow for maybe one or even two more interesting options to be added in their place, like the X uses a day abilities or just additional power. Whether cutting casting down should come with D10 HD and +1 BaB, I don't know, I'd personally see it interesting to have spirit channeling combat class, but it's not necessity.

As it stands, by the time you get them, there are some spells that are really underwhelming on the 4 level casting, and 6 level would just make medium more akin to it's brethren in the book.

Figured I might as well suggest this, since the mediums older brother, the binder, was without casting levels of any sort. I have no idea how well this is going to be received, but brought it up anyway.